Article Haywood and Pastner Want To Go Fast

ATLANTA, GA - Sophomore wing Curtis Haywood told Georgia Tech sports reporters that, "Georgia Tech will run and could be one of the fastest teams in the country."

As many well know, this has been Coach Josh Pastner's intent since he took the reigns in Atlanta, recruiting guards that would thrive in the up tempo world such as Jose Alvarado and Mike Devoe as well as bigger wings that can shoot. This comes as no surprise since that's how Pastner primarily built his teams at Memphis.

Personally, I would not mind seeing an uptick in tempo when it comes to Georgia Tech basketball. For far too long the program has wallowed in the depths of what can only be described as a boring type of basketball. My main questions about this approach is: Are the Jackets ready? Why not last year? The obvious answer there is that center Ben Lammers would have suffered in that style, but does Pastner have the horses this year to run?

Last season the Yellow Jackets ranked 277th in adjusted tempo (possessions per 40 minutes) and 197th in adjusted offensive efficiency (points per 100 possessions) according to Kenpom. In fact, the last time a Georgia Tech team finished better than 142nd in adjusted tempo was 2011 when the Jackets finished 55th. That year they were also 191st in adjusted offensive efficiency and finished the season at 13-18.

In a recent press conference Coach Pastner did acknowledge that he wants to pick up the pace but also said that, "we'll see if I stick with it."

While I am unsure if the Jackets currently have the horses, I am sure that the current roster is made to run. Outside of redshirt senior center AD Gueye, there aren't any bigs on the roster that are traditional post players. Sophomores Moses Wright and Evan Cole both project as big fours who would thrive in a running game as opposed to back-to-the-basket, on the block big men. I also believe that transfer Shembari Phillips and true freshman Khalid Moore will benefit from the court opening up in front of them.

One concern I admit to having is defense. Last season the Jackets ranked 61st in adjusted defensive efficiency (points surrendered per 100 possessions), a ranking we should expect to suffer when coupled with giving the opposition more possessions this season. Add in the departures of perimeter defender Josh Okogie and rim protector Ben Lammers, and it becomes more difficult to project a top 100 finish in that metric.

The catch-22 here is that if Pastner does not kick up the tempo soon, recruiting may continue to be a struggle. Of course, if he goes up tempo and doesn't win basketball games, his seat may heat up around year 4 and then...recruiting will be a struggle.

This storyline may be the most interesting going into the 2018-19 season. If Jose Alvarado and Curt Gone Bad (Haywood's nickname via Twitter) both return completely healthy this season that would be a tremendous start. Stylistically, a run and gun offense makes a player like Alvarado a terror for opposing teams. Let's see how it plays out.

That article lays out the high level issues facing the Jackets right now. Recruiting has been a slow uptick and in year 3 we are still full of question marks and projects - talent is improving but really young this far into a rebuild. Recruiting at the 4 star level has to improve for us to compete in the ACC. And this year we pretty much have to transition to the style Pastner wants to have which by all accounts is a much more uptempo style. Uptempo is more fun and all that but when you don't have the horses yet - it is a great way to get blown out on a routine basis by more talented horses.

With Lammers gone we are going to have to switch to a much more perimeter focused defense. Clogging passing lanes, pressure on the ball and trying to get turnovers - while making sure we don't get blown by. AD likely won't last 20 min per game if we put the kind of pressure on him that we did on Lammers. And if you want to run, turnovers are the best way to get out on the open floor - not grind out position defense aka UVA.

In a highly competitive league like the ACC, the basecase assumption here has to be that this situation and transition takes 2 years to an uptempo style with this year being the one we take our lumps. This is where Stansbury most likely has to be patient this year while the transition happens as I think it could get ugly at times unless a whole lot of question marks turn up aces. How warm CJP's seat is next year likely hinges on how recruiting goes - get a Watson and a high end big (IOW a big pick up in recruiting) and likely patience abounds. If we can't close on the recruits we are targeting this year and have the transition season I expect this year, then the warmth described in the article starts to become the operative word.

Thanks for posting the article. As a good half court defensive team, not sure if I like the idea of playing fast. Pastner has also only realistically played 6-7 guys a game because that's really all the guys who can get ACC minutes that we have. Gonna be very winded if we run up and down the court.

Thanks for posting the article. As a good half court defensive team, not sure if I like the idea of playing fast. Pastner has also only realistically played 6-7 guys a game because that's really all the guys who can get ACC minutes that we have. Gonna be very winded if we run up and down the court.

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I understand your point however I think of the 2018-2019 rosters (Men's BB Roster), 8-10 guys could get at least 5 minutes per game if we transitioned to a running game. I think it would definitely help with recruiting if this style of play was used. From a fan's perspective, it would be exciting to see, especially if it results in wins.